Did he actually call her a 'gringo'? Wow. I've always thought that's quite an odd insult from a country that, at least then, prided itself as the 'Most European country in South America'. And this from a man who resembled George Patton...
Leopoldo Galtieri was not the most forward-thinking of individuals, it seems.
Anyways, I had an idea in mind, and this is it:
Great Britain
The United Kingdom is nearly bankrupt in 1945, and very much forced to live off of its wits regardless of this, Britain's status as the least damaged of the nations of Western Europe gives them an opening to advance its own goals and technology. Recognizing that their economic position will not last forever, the United Kingdom focuses all of its resources on excellence in technical and industrial fields, figuring (quite rightly) that they have to get an advantage while they can. They do well at this almost from the start. Britain's heavy industry is rebuilt with many modern facilities to replace ones worn out or destroyed by the war, in most fields. Britain's first giant aerospace coup is the Vickers V-1000, which is introduces the world to the jet airliner in 1955. The V-1000 and the smaller De Havilland Comet (which always has round windows ITTL) prove to be very successful, with the two aircraft selling a combined total of 1,617 units between 1955 and 1977. Britain's auto and shipbuilding industries are the same, and after the Suez Crisis, investment in nuclear energy and synthetic crude, making oil from Britain's abundant coalfields, leads to Great Britain's economy being over 25% bigger than OTL by 1980 - and the exports and reduced social costs from lower unemployment make Britain have a much, much better balance of payments situation, too.
Post-war, Britain draws down considerably. All of their battleships are scrapped save Vanguard, which becomes a museum. Blake, Lion and Tiger are kept, as the other cruisers are sold, scrapped or made into Museums. The RAF buys wholeheartedly into the jet age, though propeller-driven patrol aircraft remain in the RAF for many years to come. The first major development for the RAF is shortly after the war - The V-Bombers. The successes of Britain's aircraft industry means the Valiant is never built, and the the Avro Vulcan and Handley-Page Victor are the V-bomber force, with 85 Vulcans and 60 Victors built and operational by 1960. The cancellation of the Skybolt, however, tosses the idea of using bombers - but instead, the RAF plan to use the Vulcan as a tactical strike weapon and the Victor as a bombtruck, with both of them fitted with RR Spey engines and external hardpoints, while the Victor uses its anti-shock bodies as additional mounting points for 1000-pound bombs. Thus built, the TSR.2 is never made. 48 F-111Ks are bought in the late 1960s, fitted with RR Conway engines and British electronics. Combined with its fleet of V-1000 Tankers, the RAF remains capable of striking nearly anywhere in the world for a long time.
The RN focuses on its carriers. The fleet by the 1960s had narrowed to large carriers Ark Royal and Eagle, and smaller carriers Victorious, Hermes and Centaur. Victorious is sold to the Royal Australian Navy in 1969 and Bulwark is sold to the Royal Canadian Navy in 1971, but the end result is that Ark Royal and Eagle get major overhauls in the 1960s, while Hermes and Centaur are rebuilt as Victorious was. These four carriers are joined in 1981 by HMS Invincible, which is pretty much as OTL, followed by HMS Victorious (OTL's Ark Royal) and HMS Illustrious. The submarine fleet goes pretty much as OTL, and four Type 82s are built to escort the Ark Royal and Eagle, but with double-ended Sea Dart systems and a helicopter pad, classified as a light cruiser. A number of Type 42s are built as well, and the
Type 21 and Type 22 pretty much follow OTL, though in larger numbers. Two Type 23s are ordered earlier and are in service soon enough to serve in the Falklands War. The RN buys largely the same aircraft as OTL, with Phantom FGR.1 and Buccaneer S.2 for strike duties. The Buccs also serve from the Hermes and Centaur, joined in 1980 by the Sea Harrier, which is fitted with the Blue Vixen radar and for Skyflash missiles right from the start. The last large guns left in the RN, the Tigers live on for some time, all three still in use into the 1980s.
Argentina
In the aftermath of WWII, Argentina's position as being a supplier of the allies with foodstuffs and resources does not go unrewarded, despite the fact that Juan Peron was not much of a friend to others. Argentina's economy grows steadily throughout the 1950s, 1960s and 1970s, ending up about 50% above OTL by the early 1980s.
Salvador Allende's rise to lead Chile in 1970 is followed by a failed coup against him by General Augusto Pinochet in the fall of 1971. Disgusted, Allende turns to the East, doing a deal to work with the Soviet Union. The USSR eagerly joins this, as they want more friendly, resource-rich countries. A shocked US backstops Argentina, knowing that the two nations haven't been real friends in a while. Argentina's armed forces are soon taking in considerable quantities of American equipment, and despite alternating back and forth with civilian and military governments through the 1950s through the 1970s, Argentina's armed forces take over in 1981, sensing growing leftist tendencies and not wanting the same fate as Chile. Included in the new equipment is the 1971 Naval Shipbuilding and Construction plan, which after pressure from the West orders four Spruance-class destroyers from the United States and four Type 42 destroyers from the UK, as well as eight of the smaller MEKO 360H2 ships, which Argentina originally classes as Destroyers, though they are, in fact, sized closer to frigates.
Argentina acquires two aircraft carriers in the late 1960s - ARA Independencia and ARA Veinticinco de Mayo. Both are old British Colossus class aircraft carriers, but both are fitted with powerful 1200psi steam turbines during extensive early 1970s refits. These are equipped with F-8E fighters originally, though they are overhauled with supercritical wings (based on the NASA TF-8E design) and J79 turbojets starting in 1978. Tracker ASW aircraft and Sea King helicopters are also used on the two small carriers, with each one having an air wing of 26 aircraft, 16 of them the souped-up F-8 fighters. The Argentines also acquire four ex-USN light cruisers over the years. Two are taken out of service in 1978 but returned to operation in 1982. All are fitted with Sea Sparrow SAMs in early 1980s refits.
Following the end of Vietnam and the Americans' wish to boost the Argentines against the Chileans, the US transfers over some 60 F-4 Phantoms in 1973, along with Sparrow missiles for them. Three E-2C Hawkeyes are purchased in 1978. The Canberra bombers are still in use, and additional units are procured from several countries, including Australia and the UK itself. Argentine Canberras are also used to carry missiles, and are fitted to carry Exocet anti-ship missiles and dumb bombs. The Argentines and Brazilians co-operate on a military transport program which creates the Embraer/FMA C-390 transport, which complements the FAA's fleet of C-130 Hercules transport planes.
The War itself begins with civil unrest brewing in Argentina in late 1983. Two years of Junta rule have not been kind. The Dirty War never happens, but the military is attacking people they view as dissidents, and its not making life easy for them. Knowing that, and despite an economy which is starting to come back, Argentina starts plotting out using its armed forces to claim the Falkland Islands, claims that have stood since the early 1800s. On April 17, 1984, Argentina strikes, invading the Falkland Islands. A small British garrison there is badly overwhelmed, though they put up a stiffer fight than the Argentines had anticipated.
The Argentines had figured that Britain would not respond to this, and deployed its entire Navy to attempt to make sure of it. Argentine engineers quickly get to work expanding the airport at Stanley, and they expand Stanley's runway to 7000 feet to allow Phantoms to operate from it, though the tanker aircraft, ex-Aerolineas Argentinas Boeing 707-320 and 747-100 aircraft, have to operate from the mainland. The Argentines use their Hawkeye AWACS aircraft and their Dagger and Mirage IIIEA fighters to back up the Phantoms. The Navy is divided into three groups, and ASW exercises are run regularly to make sure the Argentines are up to speed on hunting British submarines.
It doesn't take long for Britain to realize the problems they face - but Prime Minister Thatcher won't budge, and with four carriers and a fleet of bombers at their disposal, Thatcher figures it can be done. The Royal Navy doesn't question this, and neither do the RAF or the Royal Marines. The Royal Navy is assembled, and HMCS Challenger, Canada's light aircraft carrier, takes over operations in the North Atlantic to allow HMS Ark Royal to go with the mission force. Canada, Australia, New Zealand, France and the United States offer direct assistance, though Britain thinks they can handle it on their own. The Task Force for the Falklands sails on April 28, 1984, with three-quarters of the entire RN in on it. Eagle is the flagship, with Ark Royal, Hermes, Centaur and Illustrious on the task as well. Ark Royal and Eagle carry seventeen each of Phantom FGR.1s and Buccaneer S.2s, along with two E-2C Hawkeyes, three Gannets (one for COD and the other two for electronic warfare) and nine Sea King helicopters. Hermes and Centaur are carrying twelve each of Buccaneer S.2s and Sea Harriers, two Hawkeyes and six helicopters. Illustrious is just using the Sea Harrier, though its carries 22 of them. The chief escort ships are light cruisers Tiger, Lion and Blake, with each carrier being assigned a Type 82 light cruiser for air defense. Illustrious travels with the amphibious force behind the main body, and the British carriers head first to deal with the Argentine armed forces.
More to come......
